Apple Ipad arrives and questions arise

Bits of information travel across copper wires feeding into a wall streaming information instantly to unidentified faceless users over the World Wide Web. The refresh button is being pushed over and over again as the clicking sound of the f5 key signals a new age battle cry for geekdom in anticipation of the unveiling of Apples new iPad.

Apple CEO, Steve Jobs revealed Apple's first ever tablet style computer last Wednesday. The iPad is looking to expand the capabilities and functionality of its predecessors that suffered from clunky software and poor touch screen capabilities.

The iPad looks to be a bigger and more advanced version of Apples already popular iPhone, and will be capable of running all 100,000+ apps that already exist for the phone.

Originally believed to cost anywhere between $700-$800 it is reported in the article "What Apples iPad means for your wallet," from the Wall Street Journal that pricing starts at $499 for the Wi-Fi only model. However, a model priced at about $629 will offer 3G capabilities with an additional $30 a month for an AT&T data plan.

The iPad looks to bolster full touch screen and run the same operating system as its little big brother the iPhone. Some sites see it as a full colored newsgathering and e-reading goliath capable of stealing some of Amazons Kindle's fire.

Despite having a wealth of Apps to choose from the iPad is not without its critics.

In the article "Ten Things Missing From the iPad," author Charlie Sorrel of Wired magazine says, "Many were expecting cameras, kickstands and some crazy new form of text input. The iPad, though, is better defined by what isn't there."

So what isn't in the iPad? Well according to Sorrel's article it is missing the ability to run Adobe Flash. This is unfortunate for users because Flash is used on fan-favorite sites like Youtube and Hulu.com.

Unfortunately for the people who use Skype and instant messaging the iPad does not come with a digital camera or keyboard built in. However, to reconcile the keyboard issue Apple will sell a simplified keyboard retailing about $70.

Despite, these few limitation I don't see the iPad being a replacement for the laptop computer, yet I do see it having value in other markets.

I see it being useful in hospitals as a useful portable device to pull up medical charts and x-rays on. This I believe would make it easier for doctors and nurses to relay information on a patient's condition to the family and to the other workers.